New Medicine Service (NMS) – Myth busting

Myth: I can provide NMS consultations using text-based communication methods.
Wrong! Consultations must be provided in person, face-to-face or remotely, i.e. via telephone or another live audio link or a live video link.

Text-based communication methods must only be used to support, and not replace, in-person face-to-face or remote, i.e. via telephone or another live audio link or a live video link, consultations undertaken as part of this service. 

Myth: The pharmacist can always choose what is the appropriate time period between the Intervention and Follow-up consultations.
Wrong! The Intervention consultation should be undertaken between a minimum of 7 days and up to a maximum of 14 days after patient engagement.

The Follow-up consultation is to be undertaken between a minimum of 14 days and up to a maximum of 21 days after the Intervention consultation.

The Intervention and Follow-up consultations can only be delivered outside of the timeframes stated above in exceptional circumstances, e.g. the patient has informed the pharmacy staff that they will be away on holiday, and if in the professional opinion of the pharmacist they believe the patient would benefit from the continued provision of the service. The exceptional circumstances for delivery outside of the stated timeframes must be recorded in the pharmacy’s clinical record for the service.

Myth: The Patient engagement stage and Intervention consultation can be provided at the same time, e.g. I can phone the patient, tell them about the service and recruit them for an NMS (Stage 1, Patient engagement) and provide the Intervention consultation (Stage 2) at the same time.
Wrong! The Intervention consultation should be undertaken between a minimum of 7 days and up to a maximum of 14 days after patient engagement. Normally, patient engagement should take place at the time the patient collects or receives their prescription for the new medicine.

Myth: I don’t need to obtain patient consent each time a patient is signed up for the NMS.
Wrong! Patient consent needs to be obtained every time a patient is signed up for the NMS.

Myth: Pharmacy technicians can provide the NMS Intervention and Follow up stages.
Wrong! The NMS Intervention and Follow up stages must be provided by a pharmacist who has self-declared that they have the skills and knowledge to do so.  However, the pharmacy can make good use of skill mix by allowing support staff to book appointments, prepare copies of forms, and transcribing details of the consultations where these are later entered into electronic records.

Myth: Trainee pharmacists can provide the NMS Intervention and Follow up stages.
Wrong! The NMS Intervention and Follow up stages must be provided by a pharmacist who has self-declared that they have the skills and knowledge to do so.  However, the pharmacy can make good use of skill mix by allowing support staff to book appointments, prepare copies of forms, and transcribing details of the consultations where these are later entered into electronic records.

Myth: Distance Selling Premises (DSP) pharmacies can provide NMS in-person face-to-face at the pharmacy premises.
Wrong! Since 1st October 2025, DSPs are not permitted to provide Directed services (Advanced, National Enhanced, Enhanced) face-to-face with patients present at the pharmacy premises. Therefore NMS cannot be provided in this way.

Myth: I cannot provide NMS in a patient’s home.
Wrong! The service may be provided in patients’ homes, but the pharmacy owner must ensure appropriate safeguarding arrangements are in place, including ensuring pharmacists have a valid Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) certificate, and there are appropriate procedures and indemnity arrangements in place. Evidence of safeguarding checks, procedures and indemnity must be made available to the commissioner upon request.

Myth: I can sub-contract NMS, so it is provided via a remote consultation with the patient by a pharmacist working off the pharmacy premises who is not employed by the pharmacy owner. 
Wrong! Pharmacy owners are not permitted to use sub-contracting arrangements at a location other than the pharmacy premises for the service to be provided on their behalf.

If the service is provided off the pharmacy premises, the pharmacist providing the service:

• Must be employed directly by the pharmacy, or a company in the same group* as the pharmacy; and
• Must have access to the records of the patient that are held by or are accessible by the pharmacy, which are required to provide the service safely and effectively.

*A group is defined here as a parent undertaking and its subsidiary undertakings as defined in the Companies Act 2006

The changes were implemented by Secretary of State Directions and they came into effect on 29th October 2025.

Myth: I can always offer NMS to a patient if they have had a formulation change.
Wrong! It is not generally appropriate for the service to be provided where there has been a formulation change.

The rationale for this is that a change from one solid dosage form to another is unlikely to lead to clinical issues for a patient and hence provision of the service in such circumstances would not provide value to the NHS. However, there may be circumstances where in the professional opinion of the pharmacist, they believe the patient would benefit from the provision of the service where they are moving from one formulation of a medicine to another. In this case, the service can be provided and the pharmacist should document the rationale for their professional decision in the pharmacy’s clinical record for the service.

Myth: The first prescription for the new medicine must always be dispensed at the pharmacy for the patient to be eligible for NMS.
Wrong! In circumstances where the patient has been referred by a healthcare professional at a hospital that has already dispensed the new medicine, it is not a requirement that the pharmacy has dispensed the first prescription.

If the patient has been identified by pharmacy staff or referred or signposted following prescribing of an eligible new medicine, the first prescription for the new medicine will need to be dispensed by the pharmacy in accordance with the Terms of Service for the patient to be eligible for NMS at the pharmacy.

Myth: NMS can only be provided to patients registered with a GP practice.
Wrong! The service can be provided to patients who are not registered with a GP practice. In this instance the pharmacy staff should recommend that the patient registers with a GP practice and advise them on how they can do this. The pharmacist must make their best endeavours to ensure that any clinically relevant information following the consultation(s) is fed back to the prescriber of the new medicine(s). This should also be recorded in the patient’s clinical record.

Myth: The patient must have been using the pharmacy for a certain period for them to be eligible to receive the service?
Wrong! The patient does not have to have been using the pharmacy for a certain period for them to be eligible for NMS.

Myth: NMS cannot be provided to a carer.
Wrong! Where a patient cannot provide informed consent themselves and the pharmacist feels the patient would benefit from the service, the patient’s carer can be offered the support of the service to further enhance the patient’s care.

Myth: NMS cannot be provided to a child.
Wrong! Where the patient is competent to give consent to receive the service and to share information as required by the consent arrangements, then consent should be sought from the patient. If the patient is unable to competently provide consent, but the pharmacist feels the patient would benefit from the service, the parents or guardians of children newly prescribed medication can be offered the support of the service to further enhance the patient’s care. There is no minimum age for the service.

Myth: If a patient gets a new medicine dispensed at a pharmacy that does not offer the NMS, but then requests the service from another pharmacy, the second pharmacy can provide the service.
Wrong! Only the pharmacy that dispenses the new medicine can provide the NMS.

Myth: If a patient has been prescribed an NMS target medicine in the past and this is then stopped by the prescriber, the patient would be eligible for an NMS if the prescriber re-initiates the treatment.
Wrong! The Directions only allow the service to be provided to the patient on the first occasion that it is prescribed for them.

Myth: If a patient is prescribed a higher strength of a target NMS medicine (having previously been prescribed a lower strength of the same medicine) they would be eligible for NMS.
Wrong! No, as the NMS can only be provided on the first occasion a patient is prescribed an individual medicine.

Myth: I can claim payment if contact with the patient cannot be made for the Intervention consultation (stage 2).
Wrong! If the Intervention consultation does not happen and contact with the patient cannot be made, the service is ended as incomplete and payment cannot be claimed for the Intervention consultation.

This must be recorded in the pharmacy’s clinical record for the service and the patient exits the service.

Myth: I can claim payment if contact with the patient cannot be made for the Follow-up consultation (stage 3).
Wrong! If the Follow-up consultation does not happen and contact with the patient cannot be made, the service is ended as incomplete and payment cannot be claimed for the Follow-up consultation.

This must be recorded in the pharmacy’s clinical record for the service and the patient exits the service.

Myth: If a patient is prescribed multiple new medicines at the same time, NMS consultation fees can be claimed for each of the new medicines.
Wrong! The NMS should cover all new medicines prescribed at the same time therefore only one consultation fee can be claimed.